The City of Dust
by highwarlockofbrooklyn
Summary: Valentine may be dead, but he isn't done affecting Clary's life. Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Alec, Simon, and Magnus need all the help they can get if they're going to quell his final plan. Alec/Magnus; Clary/Jace; Isabelle/?; Simon/? T for violence/romance.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: I, unfortunately, do not own The Mortal Instruments...they still belong to Cassandra Clare. (Even though I've wished on shooting stars, eyelashes, AND 11:11)  
This is just the beginning...a bit of fluff; Magnus is throwing a party (surprise, surprise.) **

Putting down the dress she was holding, Clary sighed and turned to face Isabelle.

"Iz, can't I just wear that outfit I had on at Magnus's first party?" she asked somewhat desperately.

"No, Clary, and it is because I love you that I refuse to let you wear a recycled outfit," Isabelle retorted snappishly. Isabelle was ready to go to Magnus's party already, dressed in a sequined tank top and black leather skirt that Clary's mother would never have Clary wear. Then again, Clary thought, her mother hadn't even let her into the Shadowhunter world-that had been chance and insistence on Clary's part.

Isabelle rifled through her closet, frustrated.

"Clary, I don't know what to-ah, never mind. Found it!" Isabelle threw a couple of garments on hangers toward Clary. "Jace is going to love this," she said, shoving Clary towards her bathroom.

Isabelle added a final touch to her outfit (fishnet tights) and waited for Clary to finish getting dressed. It took Clary longer than it should have to get dressed, and eventually Isabelle banged on the bathroom door, impatient.

"You have to come out of the bathroom sometime, Clary," she called. "You'll thank me for this later!"

"I doubt that," said Clary acerbically, pushing open the bathroom door with unnecessary force. Isabelle smiled. "This outfit looks ridiculous on me," Clary protested, yanking down the shirt. Isabelle had dressed her in a tight, shimmery purple top that laced up the back and very flouncy, very short black tulle skirt that, in Clary's opinion, showed far too much skin. Isabelle smirked in response.

"Izzy! I can't possibly go out in this!"  
"You're right," Isabelle said, "Put these on as well." She tossed a pair of artfully ripped purple

tights and heeled black boots in Clary's direction. Clary slid them on cautiously. The boots were heavy combat boots that reached mid-calf. She sighed, resigned.

"One of these days, Isabelle…" it was an empty threat, and not even that, really, but Izzy just rolled her eyes and stood Clary in front of her mirror.

"Did you want to finish that threat, or just letting it trail off menacingly?" Isabelle smirked, patting Clary on the head and then pushing her gently into the vanity chair. Clary waited patiently as Isabelle arranged her hair into a voluminous half-up style and smudged glittery black eyeliner around her green eyes. When Isabelle was done, she pulled Clary from the chair, with a "we're-going-to-be-late-can-you-please-hurry-up?" type of look.

The thing that Jace hated most about girls was the infuriatingly long amount of time that they took to get ready. It took him three minutes to throw on an outfit and fix his hair in an accidentally-on-purpose way. But that wasn't to say that a girl's effort was wasted on him; when Clary emerged from Isabelle's room for Magnus's party, she looked amazing. Jace didn't really even want to go to the party anymore; he would have been content to guard the Institute…with Clary…possibly from his bedroom…

Clary, Jace thought, probably wouldn't have minded staying home, judging solely on the way she was looking at him. He gave Clary only a brief kiss before Isabelle pulled them both into the elevator.

"Aren't we waiting for Alec?" Clary asked.  
Jace smirked, and Isabelle said, "He's been at Magnus's apartment all day, helping him get

ready."

"Or something like that," Jace muttered quietly. Isabelle and Clary rolled their eyes, and Jace

took to staring at Clary again. She pulled her short skirt down uncomfortably.

The walk to Magnus's place was not a long one, but Clary's boots were already growing uncomfortable by the time they reached the doorstep.

"Why exactly is Magnus having this party?" Jace asked as the trio climbed up the narrow staircase leading to the party.

"Does Magnus ever really need an excuse to have a party?" Isabelle answered. "This one, actually, is for what happened in Idris last month."

"What, you mean him and Alec, because that's been going on for a wh-" Jace stopped as Isabelle smacked him sharply in the chest.

"No, you know what I mean, Jace," she snapped.

He shrugged and caught at Clary's hand as Isabelle pushed aside the door beads that separated the stairway from the party. When they entered the room, it was mostly occupied by Downworlders. This had been expected, because Magnus was a Downworlder, but Clary, Jace, Isabelle, and Alec, wherever he was, were the only Shadowhunters in the room. They knew that it was only because of Alec that they had been invited. The three made their way across the crowded living-room-slash-dance-floor to find their host. Magnus, as usual, was standing in the middle of the floor. He was wearing what appeared to be a tank top covered in dark blue sequins (somewhat similar to the one Iz was wearing, Clary noted) with a studded, metallic silver leather vest and tight, ripped electric blue jeans. His catlike eyes were coated in their normal amount of glitter and his fingernails and fingers were also covered in glitter. Magnus stopped his conversation with a tall, thin blond man-probably a warlock (and a good looking one at that, thought Isabelle) judging by his catlike eyes (not unlike Magnus's) and the copious amount of glitter that he had on. Jace, Clary, and Isabelle greeted Magnus, who greeted them briefly and turned back to the warlock he had been talking to.

Isabelle soon located Simon in a throng of vampires and they were lost on the dance floor within minutes. Clary sat down at Magnus's makeshift bar and waited for Jace, who said he needed to use the bathroom. She found herself next to Alec, who was dressed in what appeared to be a new outfit. The dark blue V-neck shirt that he was wearing hugged his lean frame in a much more flattering way than his usual ancient sweater did and set off his deep blue eyes. Even Alec's jeans appeared new, hanging on him in a way that made Clary think that he had bothered to try the jeans on before buying them.

"Hi, Clary," he said, sounding rather sullen.

"Hi Alec," Clary greeted him back. The bartender, who Clary thought might be a Fey, set a drink down in front of her. "What's wrong?" Alec shook his head, not really wanting to discuss whatever it was.

They sat in silence for a few moments, until Alec suddenly asked, "Are there no straight warlocks anywhere?" The sudden outburst surprised Clary, who did not know what to say.

"Well, they all seem to like glitter quite a bit," she answered finally.

Alec grinned apologetically, something of a rare gesture. "Yeah, and the glitter gets everywhere. It sticks to everything, too. I've found it in my-" he said absently. "Um, never mind. That's beside the point. I'm sorry, Clary," he said sheepishly. "I'm not usually like this…" he trailed off, sitting up in his seat to look for what Clary could only imagine to be Magnus.

"Relationship trouble?" Clary guessed.

"Something like that. It's just…Magnus's friend came in today. He's a warlock. That blond one he's talking to-his name is Farek Meld, I think. Anyways, since he got here, Magnus hasn't left his side, and he's all over Magnus." Alec pouted a little. Clary felt bad, understanding Alec's jealousy. Farek Meld had probably known Magnus a lot longer than Alec had, and his return couldn't have been easy for Alec. "I even dressed up," Alec added, blushing faintly.

"It suits you," Clary said honestly. "You should try it more often." This made Alec blush even more. "Now come dance with me." Clary pulled Alec up from his seat at the bar (where she suspected he had been sitting for a little too long, anyways) and dragged him, protesting, onto the dance floor. Clary danced (mostly jumping up and down to the beat of the techno-pop dance mix playing) and Alec sort of bobbed up and down. Jace was nowhere to be found, making Clary suspicious that he was vandalizing vampire motorcycles again, but she couldn't bring herself to care.

Alec was just being taught how to properly dance (or jump up and down) by Clary when a slow song came on. After the collective groan from the crowd, there was a mass shuffle to find a partner.

"Alec, go," whispered Clary. She pushed him toward the center of the dance floor, where Magnus had been earlier. Alec froze, but Clary walked behind him, keeping her small hand on his back and steering him toward his boyfriend. She was surprisingly forceful for such a little thing, Alec thought. When they got to the middle, Magnus was absolutely there. He was there with Farek. They weren't dancing, but it was evident that Magnus was very worked up about something. Whenever Magnus was agitated, little blue sparks would fly from his fingertips, and the sparks were going in full force at the moment.

Just as Alec was about to cross the last five steps to Magnus, Farek Meld bowed his head and kissed Magnus. Alec stopped abruptly and turned back to Clary, his heart thrumming out wild rhythms in his chest. What Alec didn't see was Magnus pushing Farek away. He didn't see Magnus patiently explain that he already had a boyfriend.

He didn't see Magnus looking for him. But Clary did.


	2. Chapter 2

Magnus pushed Farek away somewhat angrily. He wasn't really angry with Farek; it was himself more than anything. After a brief explanation ("I'll call you when I'm single, darling, I've already got a boyfriend") Magnus searched the crowd for Alec. Spotting the tall, dark haired figure, Magnus automatically began to move toward him.

Something small stopped him, putting its hand on his chest. Magnus looked down. Oh. It was Clary, not a goblin. "Sweetie, I love the fact that you want a piece of this magnificence, but this isn't really a good time to feel me up," he told her.

"It's a fantastic time, actually," she said through her teeth. Clary gripped Magnus's arm almost painfully and pulled him to the side of the room. "Listen, Magnus, I know what happened. You most certainly know what happened. But Alec doesn't know what happened. He just saw you and Farek kissing, not you rejecting Farek. Just give him a minute to calm down; I'll go talk to him. The Angel knows that I know what something like this feels like." Magnus sighed theatrically but acknowledged that Clary was right by crossing his arms and nodding. Clary left Magnus by the sofa and searched out Alec again. He wasn't by the bar, but she did see Jace there, regaling a group of vampires with the story of how he had once gotten into a fight at a werewolf bar. The vampires were smiling and laughing, most likely at the werewolf's expense, Clary thought. Eventually she spotted Alec sitting alone in a corner, as away from the party as he could get. Clary laid a hand on his arm. Alec's deep blue eyes looked up at her, troubled.

"Alec, it's not what you think it is," she told him.

"How are you so sure, Clary? I should have known that someone like Magnus would never be satisfied with anyone like me. Magnus is…everything I'm not." Alec sounded more vulnerable than Clary had ever heard him sound.

"No, she's right," a drawling voice said from behind Clary. Magnus stepped into view and Alec visibly tensed.

"Alec, darling, I don't cheat, if that's what you're so bothered about," Magnus said. Alec flushed. "Really, your lack of confidence in me is disheartening."

Alec's face turned an even brighter red. "I-I have confidence in you, don't I? I mean, of course I do. It's just that you're…" Alec was at a loss for words. "You're confident, and outgoing, and I'm not…and I just, well, I would understand if someone like you wouldn't want to go out with someone like me." He retreated further into his chair. Magnus perched gently on the arm of the chair and put a glittery hand on Alec's shoulder.

"This is important, okay? You listen to me, Alec Lightwood. I love that you're shy. I love that you have insecurities. And I love you. You will never not be right for me, so just get that through your head," Magnus finished, a little out of breath. Alec realized that Clary had gone, but it barely registered. Magnus hadn't been trying to break his heart; he could see the sincerity in Magnus' catlike eyes. With a lithe, almost dancelike movement, Magnus was drifting across the room toward the DJ. After a moment, another slow song interrupted the techno that was playing. A collective groan could be heard from the sweaty dancers on the floor, who had formed the promising beginnings of a mosh pit in the living room.

"Alexander, darling, may I have this dance?" Magnus asked as soon as he was back. Alec smiled at the High Warlock of Brooklyn shyly.

"It would be my pleasure."

It had taken Clary several minutes, but eventually she located Jace. He had migrated to the roof and was standing alone, looking out at the city below. His blond hair was windblown, and Clary thought that he looked like the angel that she had so frequently drawn him as. Clary shivered as the breeze penetrated her clothing and walked over to Jace. He didn't turn, only wrapped his arm around her when she hugged him.

"Why are you up here?"

"Well, it turns out that you actually shouldn't provoke vampires," he answered, kissing the top of Clary's head.

"Care to elaborate?" Clary asked hesitantly.

"No." Clary accepted Jace's answer. If he really had made the vampires angry somehow, it was probably better just to keep his mouth shut. And anyway, Clary was content just to stand in the warm circle of Jace's arms.

"Dance with me?" Jace asked, wrapping his arms around her waist. Clary slid her arms around Jace's neck and they began to revolve slowly, ignoring the fast paced music that could clearly be heard even outside of Magnus' apartment. Suddenly the door to the roof banged open again. Isabelle stood there, her dark hair wildly framing her pale face. Her big eyes were dark and serious.

"I hate to interrupt you two lovebirds, but we've got a problem," she said breathlessly.

"What is it?" Jace asked, his guard instantly up. He put a hand inside his jacket, feeling for the seraph blade he stashed in a pocket before he had left.

"Demons," answered Isabelle, reaching for the whip that was, as usual, curled around her wrist. Jace and Isabelle were prepared to fight off a horde of demons (and even Clary had pulled out a dagger from Lord-knows-where) when Clary suddenly pointed skyward.

"I don't think it's demons you have to worry about," she said, and, after a quick glance upward, Jace was rather inclined to believe her.


	3. Chapter 3

A giant thing was descending on the roof of the building. As its hulking shape grew larger, Jace thought that he had never seen anything like it. The wings were spiky and bat-like, but the demon's narrow body was smooth, almost snakelike. Jace could also see several rows of pointed teeth, most likely making for a venomous bite. It wouldn't have been hard to take down, Jace thought, but at that moment the door burst open again and two figures came running out of it, closely followed by a third. Jace immediately recognized the first two as demons and the last one as Alec, who was grumbling something that sounded like, "why do things like this always happen on a roof?" by way of greeting. While Jace was naturally inclined to make a sarcastic remark, he instead focused his attention on the flying demon, which had landed on the roof. Quickly forming a plan, Jace yelled, "Clary! Isabelle! You take those things and Alec and I will get this little bastard!" Alec immediately changed direction to go after the unidentified demon and Clary and Isabelle sprung into action against the Eidolon demons.

"Jace," Alec called, "You do realize this thing has two heads, right?"

"The more, the merrier," Jace yelled back. "Just kill the thing!" Jace ran around to face one of the demon's heads. The bat-like wings were tipped with sharp, bony claws. "_Sanvi_," Jace named his Seraph blade. The demon swung its head toward Jace, who quickly jumped out of the way. He lunged back towards the thing, slashing out with his blade. It caught the neck, but only just. The creature swept one of its giant leather wings downward, trying to take Jace out with its claws. This time Jace wasn't so lucky. The pointed bones scraped across his shoulder, gouging a deep gash there. Jace flinched, but stabbed upward with the seraph blade, making contact with the thing's neck. The demon screeched, and Jace swung again, and then looked across the roof. The girls were fighting off a miniature demon horde. As he watched, Clary stabbed one directly through where its heart would be. The Eidolon demon froze, and then its body disintegrated. Impressed, Jace turned back to his own demon. He jumped out of the way as its ugly head descended to bite him. Seizing the opportunity, Jace brought his blade down on its neck, finally slicing through in one swift motion. Mildly disgusted, Jace ran around to help Alec.

Alec was faring quite well. As Jace reached him, he stabbed the demon in its ribs. Blackish blood poured out and Alec jumped out of the way before the blood could get on his shoes. Weakened, the demon collapsed on the roof of the building. Alec stabbed its body, just to make sure it was dead, and turned to Jace as the massive body grew smaller and smaller before disappearing completely. Though he kept a straight, even bored, face, Alec was elated. That demon had been huge and _he_ had been the one to actually kill it. Truthfully, he couldn't wait to tell Magnus, but that would have to wait. He joined Jace and walked over to where the girls were sitting on some sort of gauge. They looked disinterested, but Alec noticed that they both still had weapons out.

"Clary, you should sleep over tonight," Isabelle was saying. Clary nodded.

"I'll have to talk to my mom first, just hang on a sec," she said as she pulled out her phone. After dialing, she had a brief conversation with her mother. "Mom? Hi. I was wondering, could I sleep over with Isabelle at the Institute tonight?" There was a pause as Jocelyn Fray spoke to her daughter. "No, it's just Isabelle." Pause. "No, they're out tonight." Pause. "Fighting demons, I suppose. They'll probably go to Magnus's party after." Pause. "No, I won't. Promise. Isabelle will lend me clothes. No, I'll be fine. Thanks, mom! Okay, bye! I love you too. Okay, bye," Clary said finally, snapping the phone shut. She sighed. "I'm allowed to sleep over, as long as those demons known as _boys_ will not be present." She looked at Jace and Alec in a mock-glare and then rolled her eyes. Alec laughed. Jocelyn knew that Alec posed no threat to her daughter. She had been there in Idris when he had…well, she knew he was gay. Alec couldn't think of that without blushing, and sure enough a pink flush rose in his face. He followed the rest of them back to the party.

"You lied," said Jace, sounding surprised.

"I lie all the time," Clary answered.

"Yeah, but why?" he asked. "I mean, you knew we were coming back to the institute tonight. Well, I am, I don't know about Alec." Jace shot a sideways glance at Alec, who reddened and mumbled something unintelligible.

"Jace," said Clary with the patient air of explaining something to a three year old, "Do you really think that Jocelyn will let me stay overnight in my boyfriend's home, regardless of whether or not I will be with his sister? Angel knows what kind of shenanigans we'd get up to," she said, wiggling her eyebrows. Alec laughed.

"She's right, Jace," he added with a tone of mock superiority. "You should know this." Jace rolled his eyes and the foursome headed back to the party.

"It's not even like I was completely lying," Clary said. "I mean, you are out fighting demons, and you are going back to Magnus's party after."

"Well," said Isabelle, "they tried to go back to Magnus's party." The room was deserted, cleared completely of the Downworld crowd (including Farek, Alec noted happily.) Magnus was sprawled on the floor blowing multicolored smoke rings. His cat eyes gleamed in the semi-darkness.

"Uh, how long were we gone?" Jace inquired.

Magnus sent a purple smoke ring at Chairman Meow, who batted it with his tiny paw. Magnus smiled lazily, patted the cat's small head and answered, "Oh, about twenty-five minutes."

"What, did you kill everyone and send their bodies through a Portal?" Jace asked, toeing a bottle with his boot. It contained the acid green remnants of a faerie drink.

"No, that's what I'm going to do to you if you don't stop bothering me," Magnus answered irritably. "I got bored. And I'll get bored again, once I'm done with this." He blew a green smoke ring to the ceiling and watched it dissipate.

"Fascinating," Jace said in a monotone. "Alec, how do you put up with this? Rhetorical question. I'm going to head back to the Institute, actually, as I would like to return before next Wednesday." After a glare from Alec, Jace thanked Magnus for the party before leaving. Clary and Isabelle also thanked Magnus, and then followed Jace out the door. It was only a little after eleven, and the walk to the Institute did not take very long. Isabelle immediately started skipping down the hallway to her bedroom, pulling Clary along behind her.

"I'm going to order food!" Jace called after them. He received no reply. "Fine, more for me."


	4. Chapter 4

**Since I'm sick, I've had more time to write lately. Not good for me, but good for you guys! This chapter has more Alec/Magnus and Jace/Clary. I would appreciate reviews-how are the relationships going? What do you think so far? As usual, I'm still writing this from my house, and my name is still not Cassandra Clare, so I don't own any of the characters (nor have I for the past two chapters.) Enjoy!**

"I think it's time for some jammies," said Isabelle. She pulled out her own pink pajamas and then threw a pair of dark blue ones at Clary. After changing, Isabelle laid down on her bed, hugging a pillow tightly to her chest. She was acting unusually subdued for someone who had just been skipping down the hallway. Clary sat next to her.

"What's wrong, Izzy?" she asked, pulling her hair into a single braid.

Isabelle sniffed and swiped at her nose. "It's Simon," she offered by way of explanation. Clary understood. Simon had kind of been dating Isabelle _and_ Maia, a young werewolf in Luke's pack. "I wouldn't care so much, but I think I might kind of love Simon," said Isabelle. Clary was surprised, but kept her mouth shut, knowing Isabelle wasn't finished. "He's such an idiot. All he does is play video games. But he's _nice_. I just don't think he likes me as much as I like him. I mean, I know he really likes Maia too," Isabelle added. Her eyes welled up and she blinked, smearing her makeup.

Clary stroked Isabelle's hair sympathetically. "I don't know if this helps, but I've been friends with Simon for a while. He _is_ an idiot. He's kind of relationship-stupid, and awkward, but I know he likes you. Did he say something different tonight?"

"He said he needs some time to decide what he wants to do with his life, or something like that. He pretty much broke up with me. I'm sorry, Clary, I'm not usually like this, I don't know what it is."

"Oh. It's okay. I don't _exactly_ know what you're going through, but I _did_ believe that my boyfriend was my brother for a while, which is also rather distressing, to say the least." Isabelle gave a half smile and wiped her eyes again. Clary sat with Isabelle for a while until the other girl began to fall asleep, though she was still sniffling.

"FOOD!" Jace yelled from the hallway.

"Are you coming?" Clary asked. Isabelle shook her head and reached for a tissue.

"Maybe in a bit," she answered.

"Do you want me to stay?"

"No, it's okay. I'll probably just go to sleep. I'm sorry, Clary. I'll make it up to you and we'll do something fun one of these days, promise." Isabelle sounded defenseless. Clary felt bad for her.

"Don't worry, it's fine. You'll feel better in the morning. Just get some sleep," Clary told her. Isabelle was quickly becoming like a sister to her. "Goodnight, Isabelle." Clary left the room and drifted down the hallway to the kitchen. Jace was sitting at the table, digging into a container of mu shu pork.

He wiped his mouth with a napkin. "General Tso's," he said, indicating an unopened container of food. Clary grabbed a fork but did not sit down.

"Jace, what time is it?"

He looked at the clock. "About ten minutes to midnight, why?"

"Can we go up to the greenhouse?"

A few minutes later, Clary and Jace were seated on a blanket on the floor of the greenhouse next to the bush they had sat near on Clary's sixteenth birthday. They were seated next to each other, legs touching, waiting for the midnight flowers to bloom. After a minute or two, the bush's sleeping buds burst into golden flowers and the petals immediately began to drift to the floor. Clary leaned her head against Jace's shoulder.

"Does it ever get old, watching this?" she wondered.

"No," Jace answered, setting aside his food. Clary nudged her General Tso's out of the way as Jace leaned down to kiss her. His mouth was hard on hers but softer than usual, and he held her face as if to make her stay. _Kind of silly_, Clary thought. She wasn't going anywhere. Jace pushed her gently down on the blanket, but Clary stopped him.

"Is there a better place to do this than on a cement floor?" she asked. Jace sat back on his knees and then stood in a quick, graceful movement. He reached out a hand to Clary and pulled her up. Together they walked back to Jace's room. He didn't let go of her the entire way there, keeping his arm around her waist. Jace opened the door.

"Well, that went a lot better than the last time," he said cheerfully, remembering the time that he had gone back to Clary's room and found a perturbed Simon in her bed. "Hang on a sec," he said, pulling his old blue pajamas out of a drawer. Jace went into his bathroom to change and Clary sat on his bed. She felt a little nervous, knowing that whatever happened probably wasn't going to be like that night in Alicante, where they had barely touched. When Jace walked out of the bathroom Clary gave an involuntary shiver. "Where were we?" he asked, sitting next to her.

It wasn't long before they were kissing, tangled clumsily on the bed. It was both similar and not similar to that night at the Morgenstern manor in Idris. Their kissing was much the same, but Jace no longer felt that nagging sense that he was doing something wrong. His hands were steady as he touched Clary-feeling the soft lines of her face and running his fingers through her hair. He shuddered when he felt her small hands lifting his shirt off but didn't stop her. Nor did she stop him when he slid his hands under her thin tank top. Clary touched the raised Marks on Jace's body and he let his mouth trail down her neck until he was kissing her collarbone. Eventually he made his way back up to her mouth. Clary tangled her fingers in Jace's blond curls. His hands explored her midriff while she explored his mouth.

Eventually they stopped, not going beyond kissing. Clary did not return to her own room, though, instead curling up with Jace in his bed. She fell asleep in his arms, his body curled protectively around hers.

Back at Magnus's apartment, Alec and Magnus were getting ready for bed. Magnus had magically removed all of the glitter and makeup that he usually wore, leaving his face pale but natural. _And still beautiful,_ Alec thought. Alec was already under the covers, waiting for Magnus to remove the last traces of sparkly blue eyeliner.

At length, Magnus slid into bed beside Alec. Alec fell asleep almost immediately, but Magnus, for some reason, could not. He got back out of bed and threw on a silk dressing gown printed with dragons and Chinese characters, and then stood at the foot of the bed, just watching Alec breathe in and out. He was very beautiful, Magnus decided. He knew this already, but liked to remind himself of it frequently. _Alec was so fragile though. _All mortals were fragile, something reinforced by the steady rise and fall of Alec's chest. Breathe in. Breathe out. Magnus stood like that for some time, just watching—breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out. Mortals didn't realize how precious those breaths were. Eventually, Alec woke up.

"Aren't you coming to bed?" he asked blearily.

"I am," Magnus answered softly. He buried himself under the covers once more. After a quick, light kiss to Alec's forehead (something he likely did not feel, as he was already sleeping again) Magnus finally fell asleep. A perfect end to an almost perfect day.

**What do you think? More/less Alec/Magnus/Clary/Jace?**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry it's taking so long to update! I've been quite busy with school and such (it gets in the way far too often for my taste) and writing time has been scarce. However, I tried to make up for it and make this chapter longer. I know you wish you owned these characters. So do I. Unfortunately they are the creation of the wonderful Cassandra Clare and not me. Enjoy! **

"Jace!" Isabelle yelled, walking quickly down the hall to his bedroom. "Get up! We have stuff to do today and I lost Clary!" Isabelle burst into his bedroom. Jace sat bolt upright and looked around wildly. Clary rubbed her eyes blearily. Upon seeing Clary, Isabelle immediately turned pink and answered her own question. "I found Clary, never mind."

Jace, still shirtless, stretched toward the ceiling. "Good morning, Isabelle," he said with mock cheerfulness.

She glared at him. "I have breakfast in the kitchen."

"As if I needed another reason to stay in bed," he answered.

"Shut up. I ordered it from Taki's. I'll be in the kitchen whenever you're decent," Isabelle said, eyeing them suspiciously before leaving the room.

"She thinks you've compromised my virtue," Clary told Jace teasingly.

He pretended to look affronted. "I have done nothing of the sort!" He got out of bed and dug around in his dresser for a clean shirt. Clary admired the Marks that swirled up and down his arms and torso. While her mother did all in her power to hide her Marks, Jace wore his proudly. Clary preferred it this way; she thought they were beautiful in their own manner.

"What are you staring at?"

Clary stuck out her tongue. "You."

Jace grinned. "You and the rest of the female population."

Clary, anticipating a response similar to the one she received, rolled her eyes and slid out of bed. She crossed the room lightly and kissed Jace on the cheek before beating him to the bathroom.

A few minutes later, Jace, Clary, and Isabelle were seated at the kitchen table enjoying food from Taki's as promised. It was actually more of a lunch; nobody had felt like waking up early after the party.

"So, what's new this morning?" Clary asked, trying to diffuse some of the awkwardness that was hanging over the table. Immediately she regretted it as she saw the look on Isabelle's face.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm rather curious about the demon attack from last night, Alec is still nowhere to be found, and oh yeah, I just found my best friend and my brother in bed together," Isabelle said crossly. She grabbed her cup of smoothie and stormed away from the table.

"Izzy-" Clary called after her. Isabelle didn't wait, but continued on down the hall. Clary put down her fork and ran after Isabelle. "Isabelle, wait!" She reached Isabelle's bedroom and slid inside the door just before Isabelle shut it. "Izzy, it's not like that!" Isabelle crossed her arms and stared at Clary skeptically.

"Clary, I know my brother. Really, I wouldn't be…offended…if you did, I'm just kind of surprised. At you, not him. And I'm still kind of upset about Simon, and this weekend is just…not going as planned."

"No, Izzy, really. I'd swear on the Angel. It was just sleeping."

Isabelle shot Clary a look. "Does sleeping usually involve tongue for you?" she asked sweetly. "Just guessing."

Clary sighed. She wasn't going to live this down any time soon, apparently.

The first thing Alec thought when he woke up was that someone had shoved cotton balls into his brain. He blinked several times, trying to clear his head. He was still in Magnus's apartment; in his bed, to be exact. He couldn't tell what time it was. The heavy curtains hung over the windows let in almost no light.

Magnus rolled onto his back and breathed deeply. Deciding it was time to get up, he dragged himself out of bed and walked over to a window, his silky pajamas reflecting what little light there was in the room. He yanked the curtain back and Alec flinched, preparing for bright sunlight. Instead, the sky was gray and cloudy. It was almost definitely before seven.

"What time is it?" he asked sleepily.

"Half past five," Magnus answered.

"Really?"

"No. It's almost eleven. I would have let you sleep longer, but I know your sister will want you back at the Institute sometime before dinner. And since you fell asleep on me last night, I wanted to spend some time with you while you're awake."

"It feels like five-thirty," Alec groaned.

"Faerie drinks. Taste good, but have remarkable consequences, the least of which is one hell of a hangover. You, my dear, are lucky."

"That's funny, because I don't feel lucky at all."

"Poor Alec," Magnus said, shutting the curtains. He flicked his finger at an old-fashioned gas lamp, which ignited. "I have a proposition: I keep you hostage and we spend some quality time in this bed until your sister comes to take you back."

"I could live with that," agreed Alec.

Ten minutes later they were back in bed, watching Gilligan's Island on DVD. Again. Magnus was working on getting breakfast.

"Pancakes," Alec observed as breakfast appeared in front of him.

"Good job, Alec," Magnus said, patting him on the head. "I can't wait until you can tell the difference between fruits and vegetables!"

Alec that that go, instead eating his pancakes. Magnus handed him a large cup of strong black coffee.

"Can't you just fix hangovers? You know, like, magically?"

"I'm not God, darling." He laughed. "Actually, yes, I can, but I'm having far too much fun watching you suffer." Upon seeing Alec's put out expression, however, he put his hand on the younger boy's shoulder. At once Alec's head cleared. "Better?" Alec nodded.

"Much appreciated."

"Don't mention it," Magnus said, finishing off his coffee. Alec set aside the remnants of his breakfast and stretched, staring at the ceiling. "Okay, this is getting boring," Magnus said mostly to himself after a few more minutes of absentminded watching.

"Now what?" Alec asked.

"Not sure," he answered. "I mean, I did vow to keep you in this bed until your sister steals you back…"

Alec felt his heart hammering against his ribcage. Something told him that this might be it. Contrary to popular (well, Isabelle and Jace's) beliefs, he actually hadn't gone all the way with Magnus. Magnus was perfectly content to wait for whenever Alec was ready, something that Alec greatly appreciated. While Isabelle liked to throw herself at boys, he had never really wanted to throw himself at anyone.

Magnus leaned over and kissed Alec. It was sweet, but not very…Magnus-like.

"Magnus, what's wrong? You know you can tell me anything." Alec thought back. _Had he done something?_

Magnus bit his lip before speaking. Alec's eyes were a clear, deep blue, and Magnus knew that he was (as usual) being completely honest. "I'm afraid that you're still mad at me for last night. I'm afraid you'll leave. Not now, necessarily," Magnus said quickly, "But somewhere down the road. I don't think you understand, Alec. You could have _anyone_ you want. And you're so much more attractive than I am."

"Magnus, I'm not mad at you at all. I know it wasn't your fault. Also, I'm not leaving you. I promise. And I'm pretty sure that I'm not good looking. Isabelle has told me on countless occasions that my nose leaves something to be desired.

"And I don't understand. I couldn't have anyone. I have you, which in my opinion, is better. You're beautiful. With or without glitter. I love whatever makes you happy."

"That was the longest speech I've ever heard you make," Magnus said, surprised.

"Don't expect another one soon," Alec told him. "It takes a while to work up to it."

"Have I ever told you I love you?" Magnus asked.

"Yes. Why?"

"It's still true."

"Magnus?"

"Yes?"

"I love you too."

That was all the encouragement Magnus needed to lean over and pick up where they had left off. Magnus was back to his usual passionate self. He still didn't believe that Alec understood the depth of his affection. If anything happened to the younger boy, Magnus thought it might kill him. He pushed the thought out of his head. He was here. With Alec. For now. But that was all he needed.

Back at the Institute, Isabelle was planning. She paced the kitchen as Clary and Jace watched. While Isabelle was quite tense, Clary was resting her head on Jace's shoulder, his arm slung around her shoulders. Clary's eyes were closed, and she was struggling to not doze off.

"We need to figure out where the demon attack came from," Isabelle was saying. "That big one that you killed was like nothing I've ever seen. It had to have been sent by someone." Jace agreed and Clary gave a sleepy nod. "Awesome. We agree, that's fantastic," Isabelle said sarcastically. "That still doesn't explain the _why_. I vote we go check out the roof of Magnus's apartment, since they seemed to like it so much." Jace and Clary nodded sleepily. "Oh, great idea, Isabelle. Yeah, let's do that. Hey, do you mind doing everything while we snuggle?" Isabelle said, glaring pointedly at Clary and Jace.

"Love you, Iz," Jace said, jumping up from his chair. He kissed Isabelle on the check and darted out of the way as Isabelle tried to land a would-be solid punch to his chest. Laughing, he ran out of the kitchen.

"I'm going to get weapons!" He yelled back.

"Come on, you need to get dressed," said Isabelle, grabbing Clary's hand and pulling her up from her chair. Clary went obediently to her room, where she kept some clothes for when Isabelle wasn't playing Barbie dress-up with her. She changed into jeans and a t-shirt and went to meet Isabelle. Isabelle had decided to wear normal clothes; she was dressed in skinny jeans that perfectly fit her slim figure and a frilly, lacy shirt. She pulled on a leather jacket, effectively hiding her Marks. The golden handle of her whip protruded from the pocket of the jacket and Clary could hear her rune-engraved ankle bracelets jingle when she walked.

"Alright, I'm set," she said, slipping her feet into a pair of shiny flats.

Only Isabelle could look like a model and fight demons at the same time, Clary thought.

They met Jace near the elevator. His arms were full of weapons. Isabelle raised her eyebrows.

"Some for you, me, her, and Alec," Jace explained. Isabelle shook her head but said nothing as Jace distributed weapons.

"Let us go rescue Alec!" he exclaimed, punching the button for the elevator.

Isabelle smirked. "I somehow think rescuing is the last thing Alec wants right now," she muttered to no one in particular.

A short while later the trio was standing in front of Magnus's apartment once more. Jace was agitated. He bounced up and down on the balls of his feet and kept glancing around while Isabelle rang the bell. After several long moments, the door opened. Magnus was standing there in a pair of tight black leather pants and his favorite Prussian military jacket. He was also making a very rude hand gesture.

"Glad to see nothing has changed," Jace said cheerfully.

"What do you want?"

"Can we get back on your roof?" Jace asked.

"I suppose. Is Alec required for this?"

Isabelle looked at Jace, giving him a "don't even say anything or else" kind of glare. "No, not really," she hedged.

"It's fine, I'm here," Alec said, appearing behind Magnus. There were dark circles under his eyes and his hair was disheveled.

"Awesome," Jace said, passing him weapons.

"Where are we going?"

"To the roof," Isabelle answered, ruffling his hair affectionately. "Don't you look…tired?" Alec made a half-hearted attempt to punch her arm, but Isabelle pranced out of the way, her hair flying behind her as she rushed up the stairs. Everybody else followed much more slowly behind her. By the time they reached the roof, Isabelle was already scanning the surface. Spotting something, she darted over to it, picked it up, and returned with a confused look on her face.

"What is it?" Clary asked curiously.

"It looks like a tag…like a dog tag. But it's blank except for a rune."

"It might have fallen off of that _thing_ that Alec and I fought last night, although who would want to keep that beastie as a pet, I have no idea," Jace offered.

"I think it's a tracking rune," Isabelle said, still examining the tag. "Alec, do you think that Magnus could do-"

"Could do what, darling?" asked a voice from behind them. Magnus had joined them on the roof.

"Would you be able to do some sort of reverse tracking spell? If you wanted to find out where something came from?"

Magnus raised his eyebrows. "I don't know, but I can give it a try if it will stop demons from ruining my parties," he said.

**How do you think it's going so far? Let me know, if you are able! **


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